The Quileute are an Indigenous people whose historic lands are on the west side of the Olympic Peninsula, in the valleys of the Quillayute and Hoh Rivers. The Quileute are not related to either the Makah to the north or the Coast Salish peoples of western Washington, and the Quileute language is unrelated to any other in the world. Quileute land is directly exposed to the Pacific Ocean and receives about 9.5 feet of average yearly rainfall. To protect themselves, the Quileute made rainproof hats and clothing using the inner layer of cedar bark. The Quileute signed the Treaty of Olympia in 1856, in which they ceded their land and agreed to move to a reservation. In the treaty, the Quileute reserved rights for hunting, fishing, and gathering at all usual and accustomed places. However, because their land was so remote, reservations were not established until 1889 and 1893. Today, most Quileutes live on either the Quileute or the Hoh reservations.

In 1882, A.W. Smith established a school on Quileute land. He renamed Quileute individuals after Biblical characters and figures from US history. Seven years later Smith would become the "Indian agent" when the Quileute reservation was established. In this photo, Smith (left center) and his wife (right) pose with a group of Quileute school children next to a recently-built structure which may be the school.

SHS category: Indians - Schools

Caption information source: "History," Quileute Nation, retrieved from https://quileutenation.org/history/#.